Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke and his Democratic challenger, Monica Tranel, don’t agree on much, but the two repeat rivals for western Montana’s seat in the U.S. House of Representatives agree that one issue that comes up frequently on the campaign trail is affordable and available housing, or the lack thereof, in western Montana.

While housing prices have risen nationwide, a recent report found that Montana has the fastest-growing housing market in the country. The chasm between supply and demand is even more stark in Missoula, Bozeman and the Flathead Valley — all within the western House district. In Missoula, according to the Montana Regional MLS, the median sale price for a home has jumped from $419,535 in January 2021 to more than $549,000 in June of this year. During the same time period in Flathead County, it’s gone from $385,000 to $682,000. Rents have also gone up, especially in resort communities like Whitefish, where short-term rentals have become a popular investment. 

“It’s a big issue in the western House district, since it’s where some of the most expensive housing is,” said Nathan Dugan, president of Shelter WF, a Whitefish-based nonprofit that advocates for affordable housing. 

Of the statewide races this election season, the rematch between Zinke and Tranel is perhaps the most overlooked — especially when compared to a U.S. Senate race between incumbent Democrat Jon Tester and Republican challenger Tim Sheehy that could determine which party controls the upper chamber of Congress in Washington D.C. But people like Dugan are hopeful that a quieter race could mean more attention paid to policy differences. However, as he notes, there is only so much that can be done at the federal level to address the issue, since zoning and construction decisions are usually made at the local level. But that hasn’t stopped Zinke or Tranel from addressing housing issues in their campaigns. 

THE INCUMBENT 

Zinke said home ownership is a key aspect of the American dream, but he’s leery about the federal government getting too involved in housing policy.

“Sometimes Washington D.C. has good ideas, but they don’t translate to Montana,” he said in an interview with Montana Free Press, adding that even policies within the state won’t always work in different communities. 

“Bozeman isn’t going to have the same solutions as Whitefish, and Whitefish isn’t going to have the same solutions as Whitehall.”

However, he said, Congress could tackle other issues that would have a domino effect on housing prices, including reducing government spending, enacting policies that rein in inflation, and encouraging energy development, which he said could indirectly lower costs across the economy. He also said securing the southern border with Mexico — an issue Republicans have repeatedly hammered President Joe Biden on this election cycle — could help as well. 

Zinke expressed hesitation about legislation that would restrict what types of entities can own homes (Tranel has a different opinion, especially when it comes to short-term rentals). But a strategy he expressed comfort with is using federal funds to build up community water, sewer and highway infrastructure that would set the stage for homebuilding. 

On the issue of rising rent, Zinke proposes that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development create a pilot program specifically to study rising rents in “lower-population density, non-coastal states” and find ways to combat that. Zinke also said that members of Congress can act as watchdogs on federal housing money, ensuring it is spent effectively and appropriately. In May, he convinced HUD not to rescind $4.5 million from a reserve account used by Montana Housing Authorities for rental assistance. 

One piece of federal legislation that Zinke has touted as being able to directly put people in homes is the bipartisan Homes for Every Local Protector, Educator, and Responder — or “HELPER” — Act, which he has cosponsored along with 137 other members of Congress. The act would create a one-time-use home loan program through the Federal Housing Administration for first-time home-buying law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMTs and teachers that would eliminate the requirement for a down payment on a mortgage and remove monthly mortgage insurance premiums. 

“It wouldn’t solve everything, but it would help,” Zinke said. 

THE CHALLENGER

In an interview with MTFP, Tranel said the state’s housing crisis is “all I ever hear about on the trail.” 

In May, Tranel unveiled a housing plan that she said would address skyrocketing home prices and limited home supplies in the state. A key component of the plan is a proposed assessment to determine exactly how much housing is needed in the state, since Tranel said she believes data on that question is not up to date. That assessment, Tranel said, would help inform what she would try to enact to alleviate the issue, but her housing plan does offer some suggestions.  

Like Zinke, Tranel said there’s only so much that can be done at the federal level to address local housing availability. But one thing she said could be done would be to discourage “hedge funds,” “land speculators” and “foreign investors” from buying nursing homes, mobile home parks and other residential properties to flip for exaggerated profits. To accomplish that, Tranel proposes updating the federal tax code to disincentivize corporate ownership of multiple properties that are held as investments rather than as homes for people who live and work in local communities. Tranel also criticized the practice of investors buying homes in popular tourist destinations and turning them into short-term rentals.

“If you knock on doors in downtown Bozeman or downtown Missoula, you’ll find a lot of empty homes,” she said. 

In 2022, Tranel was criticized for owning stock in Airbnb while blaming the company for rising home prices. A review of current financial disclosures finds that Tranel did not report owning those stocks during the current campaign cycle. (Zinke filed for and was given an extension to file his financial disclosure forms, so they are not currently available for review). 

Tranel said the federal government should also do more to encourage the construction of mobile homes and tiny homes that cost between $50,000 and $100,000 to diversify the housing supply, thus making homeownership more accessible. Her plan notes that the federal government regulates manufactured homes and could remove a permanent chassis requirement on factory-built homes. The chassis requirement mandates that a home retain its portability, even though such homes are rarely moved. Removing it, advocates of the change say, would eliminate unnecessary construction materials and allow for new home designs. 

Tranel acknowledged that the federal government can do little to resolve local zoning issues that discourage the construction of certain types of homes. However, she said the feds could collaborate with state and local governments, businesses, nonprofits and land trusts to innovate new ideas to tackle the issue. Like Zinke, Tranel also said the federal government could support local infrastructure projects that in turn support home building. She also said she supports tax credits for first-time home buyers to offset elevated interest rates and reduce insurance premiums for buyers with Federal Housing Administration mortgages. 

“This is an existential issue for western Montana,” she said. “Is this still going to be a place where people actually live and work? Or is it just going to become a vacation destination for the wealthy?”

Justin Franz is a freelance writer, photographer and editor based in Whitefish. The Montana Free Press is a Helena-based nonprofit newsroom.